{"id":1672,"date":"2013-04-14T21:14:11","date_gmt":"2013-04-14T21:14:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/?p=1672"},"modified":"2013-04-14T21:14:11","modified_gmt":"2013-04-14T21:14:11","slug":"eating-well-without-trying-so-hard-or-worrying-so-much-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/eating-well-without-trying-so-hard-or-worrying-so-much-part-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Eating Well–Without Trying So Hard or Worrying So Much (part 2)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0Seasonal Eating = Good Eating, Automatically \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

I’ve been transitioning to place-based eating for close to a decade (see the previous post).\u00a0 With each passing year, I discover more and more amazing benefits–a whole dozen now:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Nutritional Depth<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0 Nutrition experts continually exhort us to eat a wide variety of vegetables, in other words, a lot more than the broccoli, spinach, carrots and green salads that form the vegetable backbone of our harried lives.\u00a0 Happily, eating a rainbow of vegetables is automatic when the seasons dictate our vegetable choices.\u00a0 Without even worrying about it, we’ll eat the entire, stunning array of fruits and vegetables produced over the course of a year, from spring’s radishes, sorrel and green garlics to winter’s collards, parsnips and beets.<\/li>\n
  2. <\/strong><\/strong>\n
    \"Green
    Why am I so excited by green garlics? Because I haven’t seen them for 10 months, just like the spring clothes that have been stuck in the back of my closet for months! But hurry and enjoy their mild, fresh garlic flavor; they last only a few weeks before disappearing til next year.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    Creative Depth\u00a0<\/span> <\/strong>Bored cooks are cooks highly susceptible to ditching the stovetop, leaving few options other than less-than-healthy readymade foods.\u00a0 Engaged cooks, on the other hand, have the best chance of getting real, whole foods meals on the table.\u00a0 Fortunately, interest and engagement are additional automatic by-products of seasonal eating, since local produce is constantly changing, season to season and even month to month.\u00a0 Just when tomatoes and zucchini become tiring, the winter squashes appear, adding fresh new appeal to menus.\u00a0 Kind of like getting out your spring clothes after a long winter.<\/li>\n

  3. Connection\u00a0<\/strong> <\/span>Good health is, of course, bigger than what we eat.\u00a0 Among a variety of other contributors is mental comfort.\u00a0 Place-based eating connects us to the place we live, creating a sense of nurture, comfort and security–a good foundation for good health.<\/li>\n
  4. Comforting Boundaries\u00a0<\/strong> <\/span>Speaking of comfort, many shoppers feel just the opposite\u00a0 as they head into a typical produce aisle.\u00a0 Towering stacks of produce from every corner of the globe are more likely to provoke overwhelm than comfort (proof that sheer abundance is not a sure fire solution to mealtime boredom.)\u00a0\u00a0 Seasonal produce “limitations,” on the other hand, provide comfortable boundaries.\u00a0 With only 10 to 20 produce items to consider at any one time, venturing beyond our usual produce standbys is a manageable proposition.<\/li>\n
  5. \n
    \"Autumn
    From whatever is in season, simply create a pleasing color combination and pleasing flavor is practically guaranteed.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    Simplicity\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong> <\/span>Everyone wants easy–and seasonal eating delivers here, too.\u00a0 Don’t ask me how the magic works, but in almost every case, whatever is in season pairs well with whatever else is in season.\u00a0 Winter squash and the last of the red peppers, spinach and strawberries, tomatoes and basil–great color and flavor combinations present themselves with nary a thought.<\/li>\n

  6. Super Taste\u00a0<\/strong> <\/span>Speaking of flavor, it goes without saying that produce is tastiest when it’s in season and picked fresh–which is what happens with place-based eating.<\/li>\n
  7. Time Savings\u00a0<\/strong> <\/span>Superior-tasting produce is produce that doesn’t need a lot of time-consuming preparation.\u00a0 Often, simple (and quick) is best.<\/li>\n
  8. <\/strong><\/strong>\n
    \"Eggplants\"
    Cookbooks often direct home cooks to peel and salt eggplant before using. This is done partially to combat bitterness, something that happens when eggplant has been around for too long, e.g., when it is shipped long distances. When using fresh-picked eggplant, however, I have never needed these time-consuming steps.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    Affordability\u00a0<\/span> <\/strong>Common wisdom often repeats the line about produce being prohibitively expensive.\u00a0 But buy in season and it can be enjoyed in affordable abundance.\u00a0 In fact, buy in such abundance that you can preserve some and you’ll reap the benefits of healthy produce consumption year round.<\/li>\n

  9. Just What We Crave and Need\u00a0<\/span> <\/strong>On my seasonal eating journey, I’ve found it interesting, but not surprising, that the foods provided by my place fit my needs perfectly.\u00a0 On cold winter days, I crave energy-dense roots, potatoes and squash; I’m happy to oven roast them and heat the kitchen at the same time; I don’t mind taking time to make soups and stews and braises.\u00a0 Things like cucumbers and watermelon have no appeal until the hot days of summer, when they are like electrolyte-filled “sports drinks” for me.\u00a0 And hardly do I want to heat an oven or spend much time cooking indoors, so the ease of just quickly sauteeing zucchini, slicing a tomato and boiling corn a couple minutes suits me just fine.<\/li>\n
  10. \n
    \"Frozen
    We all know how prolific zucchini can be–and cheap–but only in August and September. So freeze some and enjoy affordable nutrition in March and April–in a quick skillet dish like this, for instance.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    Grateful Miracles\u00a0<\/strong> <\/span>More and more research is showing the powerful health benefits of simply being grateful.\u00a0 Seasonal eating is an easy pathway to a grateful life.\u00a0 Gradually, we get attuned to what our place is providing us now.\u00a0 And lo and behold, even in cold Colorado, you can’t help but notice how considerate nature is!\u00a0 Not only does she provide a raucous cornucopia of produce in the summer months, but as the weather cools, she delivers a huge array of winter squashes, storage fruits and root vegetables that can be stored until spring.\u00a0 With just a little work installing an unheated cold frame, we can grow winter greens and fresh herbs to perk up the storage vegetables.\u00a0 And of course, we can dry, freeze and can all sorts of fruits vegetables to last through the cold months.\u00a0 Even with all this abundance, however, there comes a point, around early April, when we’re about to die of boredom.\u00a0 And then, in a small miracle, along comes asparagus.\u00a0 Could you ask for more?<\/li>\n

  11. Environmental Health<\/span> <\/strong>In the quest for good health, it’s easy to get self-absorbed and forget that we can only be as healthy as the place where we live, i.e, the earth that provides the very ingredients we need for good health.\u00a0 Happily, plant-based eating can reverse a lot of the damage to the earth inflicted by a globalized food industry that has become singularly profit-driven.\u00a0 The most notable benefit of place-based eating is an enormous reduction in food miles and associated carbon costs.\u00a0 But localized eating also allows us to source directly and choose products grown sustainably and to support the production of vanishing plant varieties for increased biodiversity, among many other things.<\/li>\n
  12. Economic Health<\/strong> <\/span>In a similar vein, place-based eating allows us to support a diverse range of growers, from micro to medium-sized operations that not only strengthen the fabric of our economy.\u00a0 The diversity and distribution they bring to the country also serve as a vital–but surprisingly overlooked component of true national security.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    With so many advantages and benefits, why would we possibly opt for a limited repertoire of subpar, over-priced produce requiring extra preparation?\u00a0 Interesting question with definitely doable solutions.\u00a0 Read the next post. .\u00a0 .<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    \u00a0Seasonal Eating = Good Eating, Automatically \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I’ve been transitioning to place-based eating for close to a decade (see the previous post).\u00a0 With each passing year, I discover more and more amazing benefits–a whole dozen now: Nutritional Depth\u00a0 Nutrition experts continually exhort us to eat a wide variety of vegetables, in other words, a lot … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"generate_page_header":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1672","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","masonry-post","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-50"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1672","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1672"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1672\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1672"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1672"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1672"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}